Liverpool forward Federico Chiesa will not play in the Champions League match against Bologna on Wednesday due to an injury, but Diogo Jota will be available after dealing with a minor issue.
Chiesa, who has only played 68 minutes in three games since moving from Juventus late in the transfer window, got injured during training on Monday. Liverpool manager Arne Slot confirmed that the injury is serious enough to keep the Italian player out of the match.
Jota missed open training but Slot believes the Portugal striker will be ready for the game at Anfield. Another forward, Darwin Nunez, has recovered from the illness that caused him to miss the 2-1 win against Wolverhampton in the Premier League on Saturday.
Liverpool, currently leading the Premier League after six matches, started the new Champions League format with a win against AC Milan and has achieved seven victories in eight games during Slot’s first season as manager after taking over from Jurgen Klopp.
If the Reds win against Bologna, Slot will be the first manager in the club’s history to win eight of his first nine games in charge.
Despite the success, the Dutch coach believes there is still room for improvement and pointed out several issues in the victory against Wolves that he was unhappy with.
“We, as a team, if you have so much quality, you cannot accept mediocrity,” he said. “You have to ask from yourself every second of the day, every second of the game, the highest standards that this shirt brings.
I and we as a staff have to set those standards very clear and that last 15 minutes when we lost the ball so many times in promising positions or moments that could lead to promising positions is maybe not acceptable.
“I don’t lose my temper that much; I don’t think it is a good idea to lose your temper every single day because it doesn’t work. But the positive thing is that maybe I don’t accept mediocrity, but these players themselves don’t accept it as well.”
